Thursday, April 26, 2007

We were set to visit a dear friend in the hospital yesterday, but didn't want to go empty handed. We'd heard that she already had "too many" flowers in her room, and is on a controlled diet, so food treats weren't an option. Due to her injuries, we didn't want to take her anything to manipulate, just something pretty. And bright. And cheery.

I have been playing around with my stack of solids for some time, trying to figure out a good motif that could be either repeated or enlarged to fill a throw blanket size. A few days ago, Cecily and I spotted a pattern of "French Roses" while shopping, and she wisely purchased said pattern.

Alas, I had fewer than three hours to whip up this little project, so I drew the flower freehand, used a little Wonder Under to fuse the flower and leaves on (swearing a little since I originally meant the leaves to go UNDER the flower and forgot until it was too late), and appliquéd the flower and leaves on with a (mostly) straight stitch. It was all going well with the thread matching until I got to the leaves! How do I not own leaf green?! Luckily my ancestors came to the rescue yet again and I found some in my stash of inherited serger thread! I was able to finish the back to make a pillow cover out of it, and presto: pillow completed before naptime was over!

Because of our friend's injuries, we didn't want to give her an elaborately wrapped gift, so I just tied some rick-rack around it. My husband said we should tuck my business card in, and I was tickled that the card matched so perfectly!

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

This beautiful North Portland home of ours is on the market and looking for a wonderful family to move in! Click the photo to view the details! We moved to Hillsboro to be closer to my husband's job, and if we could have moved the house we would have -- it's that great!

Imagine: four bedrooms and two full bathrooms, PLUS an office (sewing room anyone?!) PLUS a bonus/family room in a super spacious 3000 square feet! In addition to gorgeous hardwood floors, a new big kitchen, and the charm of the original 1928 built-ins. The backyard is fully fenced, the detached garage is in excellent shape, the roof was new in 2004! The house is amazing!

Monday, April 23, 2007

Soon I will have PayPal up and running, but until then you can email me: sew@sew sally . com (no spaces), I will sell you a pattern for the Farmer's Market Tote Bag for $12 and once you sew it up, you'll never need another plastic shopping bag!

Thursday, April 19, 2007

How great is this?! Really great in my book! It's a fabric postcard, that can go in the mail! I've just discovered these and want to send them to everyone I know! And this tutorial shows a nice way to do it (much classier than the strange fabric binding I saw on some!)

Classes are filling up amazingly fast! So thank you all for signing up! The skirt class is already full, but there is a waiting list, and a lot of people have had luck getting in the class that way! You can click on the list on the right, or the link above. To register for class, call Bolt at 503-287-BOLT.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Wow. So I wanted this book when I learned about it from my friend Cecily, but I found Lotta Jansdotter's BLOG just now, and now I really want the book! There is something about knowing the story of a young woman that really makes me want to support her and her craft. And it's not just because her little boy is adorable. But that certainly helps!

Saturday, April 14, 2007

My mom is in AZ with Gram and Gramps and Aunt Sue, so I was the lone family member at Cousin Melissa's baby shower -- I guess that doesn't really make sense, seeing as Melissa is my cousin. But you get it, right? Anyhow, I made a little pink knitted hat, and my mom made a cute little fleece blankie, and I sewed a bit of the vintage stash (from my great-great-grandmother's five and dime store) into a gift bag.

Friday, April 13, 2007

This is the stash I'm building for my solid color quilt. It's a quilt challenge for the quilting women in my family. We get together once a year and sew for four days straight. Or at least, we talk for four days straight, and get a LOT of sewing done! Each year we have a challenge, and this year our challenge is to make a quilt entirely of solid color fabrics. The fabric on the bottom of the stack was my inspiration, which is why there is only a little glimpse of it. I may squeeze it on the back, but we'll see. Some women keep their quilts a complete surprise until the unveiling on the first night. But I'm no good with that kind of secret!

Thursday, April 12, 2007

So this is what I tried to make out of some fabric I had on hand. Really, what I was thinking when I bought 3 yards of hot pink and purple madras is anyone's guess. But what I was thinking when I made this dress is that I probably would need to do some alterations and this fabric was the perfect thing to hack up.

Generally, I like independent pattern companies. They do an awesome job of bringing cuteness to the masses in a way that Butterick and Simplicity just never can. And for the times that you want something super simple, Vogue just never is.

So I gave it a whirl. Diligently took all my measurements, and dutifully cut out "my size". Not too long ago I made the Cute Skirt pattern by those lovely folks at Favorite Things, and I was not surprised to be making the same size. That skirt fits perfectly. Not too big, not too tight.

The dress? Another story altogether. Now, at 5' 6" and a size 12 (by their standards), I don't think I'm a strange body shape. Oh, do they ever beg to differ... The dress needs an inch taken up in the shoulders, for the shoulder to be "pinched", a dart at the bust, an inch off the bodice front, and for the ties to be moved up about three inches. This is sad. And I was so hoping that this would be the dress I could wear to my brother's wedding in July.

Mostly I was hoping that this would be the pattern for me, so that I could justify going to the sale this weekend at bolt. There are some super cute cottons that would be perfect for this dress!

This was my Easter present from my mom. When I was little, she used Peter Rabbit as the "theme of my nursery", as much as anyone had a theme to a kids room in the 70s. My "blankie" had Peter Rabbit fabric, and I loved The Tale of Peter Rabbit so much, the spine was almost falling apart.

This apron has some of the new Beatrix Potter fabrics! The background is the super cute radish print and the ruffle and straps are the matching green check. The red rick-rack and matching hankie are from my mom's enviable stash of vintage goodies. The rick-rack is actually from my great-great-grandmother's five and dime shop!

Who I am

I was born into a family of seamsters, and started sewing at age 4, in my grandma’s sewing room. All the women in my family sew, as well as some of the men, so it was easy and natural to learn. As I was growing up, my mom owned a business teaching children’s sewing, meaning there were always new and interesting projects to try. Most of all, I loved making my own clothes!

My love of sewing never faded, and I worked my way through college in the costume shop of the Theater Department at Willamette University. I learned about period costumes, improved my construction skills, and began designing costumes. As the manager of the costume shop, I was responsible for teaching the new student employees how to sew.

I began writing and publishing my patterns in early 2006, starting with the Farmer’s Market Tote. I will continue to write patterns that cater to beginners. By writing simple patterns with easy instructions, beginners have a fun time and more experienced seamsters have opportunities to embellish the projects.

My experience includes garment making, quilting, home décor, and costume design and construction. I have taught sewing to children, college students, and adults, all with great success!

When I am not creating something new in my studio, I am chasing after my toddler, reading with my almost-Kindergartener or experimenting in the kitchen.